Ten years after an apocalyptic event left the world haunted by ghosts, Roni (Bella Thorne) receives a threatening message from beyond the grave. Artifex Studios was brought in to help deliver the terrifying missive.

Artifex provided several shots for “I Still See You” centered prominently on the transition from human to undead, in one of the pivotal and most frightening scenes in the film. In the first transition shot, featured in the movie’s trailer, Roni finds herself encountering a gruesomely demonic horror.

To achieve the desired effect, Artifex took some direction from Director Scott Speer, specifying that he wanted to see the facial skin break down and reveal the oily substance flowing out. From there Artifex took the mantle and ran with it, with the director signing off along the way. The matte paint department designed the initial look in Photoshop, created by artists Mitch Stuart and Gord Oscar, who then handed off their elements to compositing. 3D modeling created a quick match-model of the face in Nuke, which the FX department then used to generate moving elements and added textures in Maya. All of the 2D tracking and integration was then completed in Nuke, by virtue of the Smart Vector toolset.

“When dealing with fantastical horror elements meshed with real-world environments and people, as we did here with ‘I Still See You,’ the most important aspect is making sure that any effects you are creating feels grounded in reality,” said Brent Veal, Artifex Compositing Supervisor. “Even if what you are creating is fantastical, having it look like it was really shot on film on the day will sell it to the audience as a real and potentially scary thing. Being subtle is also important - if the VFX steals the scene it can take away from the scary factor. Having an effect be subtle and allow the audience's mind to fill in the blanks can be much creepier.”

Artifex also provided set extensions for the film, as well as atmospheric effects. One of the environmental shots tasked to the artists involved adding a town into the background of drone footage taken over woods that was further enhanced by adding a snowfall effect. The second set extension was a low angle shot of a laboratory, that Artifex built-out, extending the main corridor and tech far into the distance. This involved a combination of CG build-out and matte paint, with blinking lights, machinery, columns, ductwork and girders.

“We’re quite proud of our contribution to ‘I Still See You,’” said Artifex founder Adam Stern. “Our initial matte painting work on the project was well-received, and we were offered the opportunity to provide VFX for several additional sequences including the very visceral ghost transition scene mentioned above. The trust and endorsement from a client to re-invest with your vision and expand on their project is what every artist strives for. We’re extremely happy with the way it turned out.”

About Artifex Studios

Industry veteran Adam Stern founded Artifex Studios in 1997. Artifex is a fully staffed creative service studio that excels at ‘White Glove’ servicing for a global TV, film, and OTT clientele. The company’s long tenured and highly experienced staffs of artists, technicians, and supervisors enable it to provide best-in-class effects on a streamlined and client-centric timeline. Artifex is based in Vancouver and provides visual effects services for North American and international clients including Disney, Dreamworks, AMC, Blumhouse Pictures, History Channel, Nickelodeon, Paramount, FOX, Netflix and others. www.ArtifexStudios.com

As of May 16, 2016, we have moved into our brand new studio. Designed by the brilliant Ruth M’rav-Jankelowitz of Janks Design Group, our new space gives us room for 50 artists and staff, a screening theatre, and lots of other goodies. Let us know if you'd like to come by for a look in person!